What Shakes The Elephant

What Shakes The Elephant

Chapter 54 – What Makes A Man

He had been here before. The same dull light was infiltrating his mind. The same sterile smell was permeating his state of consciousness and the same realization that he had almost lost everything he had was hanging over him in an unpleasant haze.

Harry held his head in his hands and rubbed at his eyes, hoping to stave off the exhaustion that was pressing into his skull. The bruises that afflicted his body made him sore and the strain on his muscles was causing odd pulsing sensations to travel through him when he stayed in one position for too long.

Draco had been taken into a treatment room by a number of Healers when they arrived. Another group of them had tended to Harry and the children but they had been released from medical care over an hour ago. Draco was still with them, though.

Albus Severus and Scorpius were sitting on the hard couch opposite Harry, heads leaning on one another as they slept. James, sitting one seat down from Harry, had been bandaged and given a potion to deal with the burns on his face and hands. The Healers had marked that he was very lucky the fire hadn’t hit him more directly or he would have terrible scarring. As it stood, he would only have light scarring on his hands and his face would be spared. Neither Harry nor James felt the need to mention why this was.

But as he sat there, with his son next to him, Harry found that he couldn’t reconcile all the events. By normal magical standards, all three boys should be mortally wounded. He tugged at his black hair and screwed up his eyes, wondering if his brain wasn’t simply foggy from the lack of rest.

“I didn’t mean for any of this to happen,” came the quiet and slightly hoarse voice of his first born. Harry lifted his head and turned to James.

“What do you mean?” he asked. He didn’t expect to have this conversation now. He had wanted to wait until they had all rested more fully.

“I didn’t mean for Scorpius to get hurt like he did,” he went on, his eyes glassy and his voice cracking from the strain. “I didn’t want to hurt him at all. And then we got taken and…”

“James… that wasn’t your fault,” Harry explained, placing a comforting hand on his son’s shoulder. He squeezed gently to try and reassure him. “Hydra was responsible for that. You couldn’t have known.”

James looked up at his father with wide eyes and furrowed brows. He looked angry and hurt all at once and Harry’s throat tightened at the sight. He just wanted to make things better for his family. He didn’t ever want to see that pained look on one of his children’s faces again.

“But it is my fault!” he exclaimed, determined to make amends for mistakes that weren’t his. “I saw you and Mr. Malfoy in the hall.” Harry’s heart stopped and his jaw dropped slightly but before he could say anything to apologize or explain, James continued not having noticed the change. “I didn’t know what to do so I ran away. I was angry with you and angry with him and… I was just so angry! Then you came to see me and… I felt bad. I’ve been so angry and horrible all this time…” He sniffed and his bandages crackled. “I went to see Scorpius to… talk to him… I didn’t know what I was going to say but I just wanted to talk.” Harry found that he couldn’t speak. He had no idea what to say either. “I don’t know what I said but it made him angry and he pulled his wand on me. And Al was angry too and we had a row. I didn’t think my spell was strong. I didn’t even think I hit him! I thought I missed but all of a sudden his eyes rolled back into his head and he fell over.” Intense pain was etched in his young features as he struggled to explain just how terrible he had been. “They took him to Madam Pomfrey and Al was so hurt… I went to apologize but… I’m no good with my words. Al didn’t believe me and Scorpius was still out of it. And then they came in…”

Harry shut his eyes and pulled James gently close to him. He held his son and tried to reassure him. He had been so worried from the moment that he realized what had happened that he had been running off of pure fear and adrenaline. All he wanted was to retrieve the kids and bring them home safely but now it seemed as though there were still so many hurts to heal.

He had been selfish and so self-involved since Ginny’s death that he couldn’t even begin to forgive himself. He couldn’t account for anything he had done. None of it was justification for having put his children second. No matter what he had said in the past to defend his actions, he couldn’t ignore how foolish he’d been.

He held James and tried not to fall apart. He tried to stay strong and calm for his children. He tried not to give in to the overwhelming insanity but it was hard and he knew that there were tears running down his face.

“You did a very brave thing tonight, James,” Harry explained, offering all the pride he could muster into that comment. He wanted his son to know just how proud he was of him. “You saved both of their lives, you know. I could never have managed what you did.”

James pulled away for a moment and looked into his father’s eyes. Harry smiled through the chaos that had overwhelmed him.

“I woke up and saw Al and Scorpius lying there,” he explained in a small and almost ashamed voice. “And Mr. Malfoy was fighting with Mrs. Malfoy and… I don’t know what happened but I got so scared for all of us. I don’t know what I did or how I did it.” He looked at his bandaged hands as though he was afraid of them. “But I had to make sure that neither of them got hurt more than they already were. I…I just had to keep them safe… I haven’t been a very good brother…”

Harry placed his hands on James’ shoulders and looked him straight in the eyes. Ginny’s hazel eyes stared back at him and for the first time, he wasn’t at all afraid of them. He did not shrink back from the sight of them but rather, felt reassured.

“You were trying to protect your brother,” Harry explained quietly. “The whole time, you were. You may not have done what was right, but you had good intentions. He knows that and, today, you were more than just a big brother, you were a hero to both Albus and Scorpius.” James looked determinately at the floor, both stunned and humbled by the words his father had spoken. Harry smiled and the faint echo of what sounded remarkably like the voice of Albus Dumbledore reminded him of the power that love holds. “You love your brother very much, don’t you?”

James’ head whipped around and stared at Harry with wide eyes.

“Love? No way!” he cried out in mild indignation. Harry fought the urge to laugh as James’ eyes shifted away from his father and landed on Al and his blond friend. “Well…maybe a little.” He shrugged. “I have to, right? He’s my brother.”

Harry just shook his head gently and relaxed a bit at the smile that drew itself on James’ face. He felt quite a bit better, knowing how his son truly felt. He leaned back against the wall and let his eyes slide shut slowly before his rest was interrupted again.

“Harry!”

Harry’s eyes snapped open in shock. His heart rate spiked briefly before he found himself bound in a bone-crushing hug and his vision was assaulted by a blur of bushy brown hair.

“Hermione,” Harry wheezed through the hug she had given him. She let go of him and gave him a moment to catch his breath while she assaulted the children with her love. She even gave Scorpius an over-zealous embrace to which he offered a confused smile.

“Oh, Harry, we’ve been so worried,” she told him letting go of little Scorpius as he turned to Al to get an explanation for the odd actions. Harry blinked several times as he got to his feet before he realized that Ron was standing sheepishly behind Hermione with Lily in his arms.

“Ron,” Harry whispered. The red-head blushed furiously before letting Lily down to hug her father. He pulled her into a strong embrace before letting her run off to play with Scorpius (her favourite, of course). Ron swallowed hard and gave Harry a determined look.

“I’m sorry for everything I’ve said,” he explained, his ears pink just as they always were. “You’ve been through a lot lately and… and Malfoy has too. I just…” He ran his hands through his hair briefly. “It’s hard to just forget the past sometimes.”

Harry nodded and bit his lip. He just wanted to be done with all the stupid fighting and arguments. He wanted it to be in the past and forgotten.

“I know,” he said slowly. “And I’m sorry too. I’ve been quite thoughtless of late and I’ve said some stupid things too.” He smiled and Ron smiled too, though mildly uneasily.

“And, I,” he began again, still blushing. “I just wanted to say… that this thing with Malfoy… you know… I know it’s been good for you…” he glanced around the room. “Current circumstances aside, anyway.”

Harry laughed along with his friend. He felt a huge weight lift off of his chest. Every time he had ever been in an argument with Ron he had felt as though there was a black cloud hanging over him. It reminded him, in those unpleasant moments, that no matter what he said or tried to believe, he couldn’t live without his friends in his life.

“Excuse me, Harry?” another new voice interrupted. Harry looked around Hermione to see Luna standing there with a vial of clear liquid. She smiled a distant smile. “It’s ready.”

His lips parted and he nodded.

Somewhere amidst all the madness he had called Luna and given her the ingredients they had collected for their cure. He knew that if anyone would know how to brew this particular potion, it would be Luna.

The Healers had told him that Draco’s recent heart problems were a result of his curse and that it would only worsen from here on out. He had tried to come to terms with the knowledge but all it served to do was further emphasize how important it was for them to find the cure. He had already lost the first love of his life to pureblood curses, he was not about to lose the other.

“Alright,” he told her and nodded to his friends before following her down the hall into Draco’s treatment room. The Healers had agreed that it would be best to use it on him first. Draco had agreed to it as well, in his moments of consciousness between the draughts he’d been given, but Harry was still unsure.

If the mixture wasn’t perfect, Draco could die.

His throat tightened and every one of his muscles tensed as they entered the treatment room. The blond was lying on the hospital bed and his eyes were closed as he slept. Harry had been here before, as well. He had hoped he would never come back here.

“It’ll be alright, Harry,” Luna reassured him with her dreamy voice. “Just believe.”

He didn’t know precisely what it was he was supposed to believe in but he nodded as she roused Draco from his slumber. His grey eyes flickered and he smiled up at Harry when he spotted him.

“Good morning, Sunshine,” Harry offered hoarsely. Draco smirked at the name and adjusted himself.

“Is everyone alright?” he asked, having most of his awareness back. Harry nodded.

“Everyone is fine.” The fear that tore through Harry at the knowledge of what was about to happen racked his body and caused him pain again. Draco shook his head.

“I’ll be fine as well,” he said simply. “Don’t worry, Potter. Malfoys have an annoying habit of refusing to die.”

Harry knew that there were other words hanging on the end of that sentence that Draco refused to speak, but the simple idea reassured him very slightly. There was no way he was going to convince Draco not to do this and, frankly, this might be the only way to guarantee that he wouldn’t suffer from more heart trouble in the future.

Draco blew him a coy kiss before taking the vial from Luna and putting it to his lips. It was all Harry could do not to jump onto the bed and wrench the potion from his hand before it touched his tongue. He bit his lip hard and grasped the end of the bed.

Draco downed the whole thing and placed it to the side. Luna and Harry both stood motionless as he took a few deep breaths, waiting with baited breath for something to happen.

After several moments, when it seemed like nothing had changed, Harry loosened his grip slightly. Then, he looked more closely at Draco’s face and he realized it had changed. His eyes were matte and unfocused. His mouth was frowning and his breathing had become forced and ragged. Harry gasped and ran to his side.

“Draco,” he whispered, putting his hand to Draco’s face. He was cold and shuddering. “No, no, Draco!”

The blond shut his eyes and let his lips fall open as it sounded as though he was choking on his own breath. Harry was vaguely aware of Luna casting spells in the background but he would not let go of Draco. He was grasping him tightly as his mind raced and his heart stopped. He couldn’t be dying. The potion had to be right. It couldn’t be happening this way. NOT now, NOT NOW.

“Draco!” Harry cried out, pulling him close and shielding him from some invisible attack. His actions were illogical but seemed the only way he could think to help him. Then, before he knew it, Draco had stopped convulsing and was leaning, limp, against Harry. “No, no, Draco!!”

In a moment his entire life seemed meaningless. In that moment he felt the most horrifying loneliness imaginable and he clutched Draco tighter and tighter as the moment passed and slipped steadily away from him. He couldn’t let go. He WOULDN’T let go!

“Please, Draco,” he whispered as he shook wildly in holding the man he loved. “No… I love you, Draco… I love you.”

There was silence and motionlessness and nothingness. Just nothing.

“You’re far too gullible, Potter.”

Harry dropped Draco out of shock and looked back at the smug blond beneath him. His face was stricken with horror and rage and he could have sworn, in that moment, that if Draco really was alive, he was going to kill him.

“You little –”

“You said you love me,” Draco interrupted with a smooth smirk. Harry glared.

“It was a lie,” he snapped, angrily getting to his feet. That had NOT been funny at all.

“I don’t think so,” Draco replied happily, shrugging off the bed sheets and moving to the side of the bed. “You sounded sincere.”

“So did you,” Harry shot, unable to stop himself from feeling relieved that Draco was moving and seemed to be healed. “Besides, you knew I loved you from before.”

Draco gave him a sly smile from over his shoulder.

“Yes, but I thought you might reconsider the fact after everything that’s happened,” he admitted. Harry didn’t know how the confidence worked in with the statement but Harry found the angry dissipating and he could do nothing but smile.

“You prat,” he retorted, exasperated. “When has danger ever deterred me?”

Draco laughed softly and got to his feet. He hugged Luna, who was simply smiling airily at them, holding the exact recipe she had designed for the cure.

“I think we need to put out a demand for all purebloods to present themselves to St Mungo’s to receive the cure,” Draco suggested to her. She nodded and smiled.

“I’ll do that immediately, Minister,” she agreed, prancing off to inform the hospital staff. Draco and Harry both gave her an odd look. Draco was certainly not yet Minister and he wasn’t even sure that it had been made official.

“Do you think she’s a Seer?” Draco remarked bemusedly as he adjusted his clothing. Harry laughed.

“Yes and I’m the Queen of England,” Harry snickered. Draco shot him a suggestive glance but Harry silenced him with a look.

“I think we should go out and see the others,” Draco suggested, standing straight and offering Harry his hand.

Harry, much more relaxed now that the major dangers had passed, pulled Draco in and kissed him full on the lips, needing to feel him again fully. Perhaps it was only to make sure he was, indeed, still alive, but the kiss was no less powerful. His fears and worries melted away and everything seemed to fall back into place with his life.

“Now we can go face the world,” he said. Draco laughed.

“Let’s start with our families,” he offered instead. Harry supposed that the idea of facing the world as a whole was still terrifying to Draco who had so many skeletons in his closet. But something still needed correcting.

“Our family.”

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A/N: There we have it. The last chapter will be up soon but I’m afraid as the end of term is speeding towards me, so are thousands of projects piling up on my head. If all goes well I’ll have the final chapter next week. I hope it works anyway.

And this is a happy little bit, isn’t it? Now I will answer about what happened to Sinistra and Hydra and whether or not Draco is going to be Minister and all that. I hope I don’t miss any questions!

Thanks for all the support and reviews and the love!